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Daredevil Season 2: where the Heroes are Built

DD Season 2 was a treat. The action was amazing, and the story line ever so compelling.

When Season 1 we were introduced to Matt Murdock, Season 2 we met Daredevil.

Season 2 got a lot to offer. When in Season 1 we were busy with Wilson Fisk, this season we met the Punisher – a man whose moral clashed with the Daredevil, however, was justified in his own avenging, then we met Elektra – Matthew’s ex-girlfriend who turned out to be more than just an adventurous psycho, and a whole new world with ninjas and immortality.

And together, they brought down Daredevil with them.

So Season 2 for me was the season when Foggy and Karen broke free from their miserable ties to Matthew by finding where they stood and what they really wanted to do, and Matthew descending.

This season, Foggy stood up for himself, and Karen found her place in journalism. They were becoming heroes with what they were doing, in their respective fields. Karen was the voice of reason, and she served as the never ending pursuit of truth.

Matthew, on the other hand, drowned deeper and deeper into his vigilante life and ignored the real life he used to love. He took up a case and abandoned it, he showed up late to important events, and he went off radar from his partners.

He became more of what Claire had warned him in the first season.

Season 1 Matt Murdock was the guy I’d love to sit down have coffee with, just to talk over some current affairs and philosophy; Season 2 Matt Murdock was the guy I’d never want to be friends with.

And despite me not liking this transformation – I believe that this was necessary.

Everything that happened in Season 2 pushed Matt to the edge. Everything and everyone, actually. Elektra kept on seducing him to kill and to go all the way, and there was Punisher as well, challenging his morality. That in the end, he decided to tell Karen, the one person whose moral compass was pointing different direction from the other two, that he was Daredevil.

Before anyone brings this up, I am fully aware that Karen is not perfect. She killed Wesley in Season 1, and that led to the death of Ben. In a sad equation, she killed two people. And Karen kept fighting that – she never let those incidents define her or drag her down. Instead, she kept on moving forward and doing what she believed would help people most.

She is the character who had done the terrible, but keeps moving forward as the voice of reason in the series. And in that aspect, I respect her character.

I still don’t like Karen Page though. Not a fan.

Elektra, I don’t like even more. Now, I know that a lot of guys love her and I see the appeal. I’d love her character as well if it didn’t feel too rushed. Elektra, to me, felt too much. Elodie Yung is beautiful, and she surely knows how to bring this version of Elektra alive. However, the character I have a problem with. Her connection with Matt. Her fickle stands.

She’s like an onion and the season just chopped the onion right in the middle. And it didn’t work.

The Punisher however, is wonderful. That is one character we can toast to and debate over. What I love about Daredevil is that they take time to uncover their villains. They make sure that the audience understand where the villains stand and how they view their morality.

“Am I justified?”

I cheered like a little kid when the Punisher helped Daredevil – that moment was life.

The way the writers create their bond, build their relationship, and have them clash over their moral standpoints was absolutely plausible.

I loved the Punisher, and I loved Kingpin, a.k.a. Wilson Fisk, in prison.

And I probably would complain about the screen time for Claire Temple, whom I love so much, but I’ll let that slip since I know she’s with Jessica and Luke.

So by the end of the season, you got yourself a question, “What is it to be a hero?”

Karen Page was a hero in her own rights. She and Daredevil were more alike than they think – when Daredevil kept searching for truths while wearing his mask and fighting crimes, Karen kept searching for truths with her research and exploration. When Daredevil fought the others physically, Karen challenged them morally.

Claire Temple was a hero in her profession. And she stayed true to her mission, to save people. Despite everything thrown her way, Claire kept helping others and saving lives. Foggy was a hero as well. He would not stop fighting for the right cause.

A lot of these characters are heroes in their own rights. Even the Punisher.